Broken Ties (Broken Nature Book 2) by David Meyer

Author:David Meyer [Meyer, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-02-24T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 34

Sanza put her hands on her hips. Arching an annoyed eyebrow, she gave him a haughty look.

He, of course, continued to smirk at her, milking the moment for all it was worth.

Abruptly, she shifted eastward. Her irritation melted away. Alarm filled her features and she spun back to face him. “They’re coming,” she mouthed.

“How long do we have?”

“Ten minutes? Twenty?”

“You’d better hurry then.”

She shook her head. “We won’t make it in time.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

She adopted a playful look. “What’s wrong? You worried about me?”

“You know how it is.” He shrugged. “A leader has to look out for everyone. Even the grunts.”

She glared at him. Then she glanced east. “Just go,” she mouthed. “We’ll catch up.”

He nodded. “See you soon.”

Turning away from her, he hurried toward his people. They chattered loudly, making wild gestures, recounting every second of the falling rocks.

“Quiet, everyone,” he announced.

The chatter stopped. A whole bunch of faces, looking rather relieved, swiveled his way.

“The Banished survived,” he began.

The relief disappeared. Once again, a somber mood took over his makeshift army.

“Our plan remains the same. We head to Natica.” He paused. “We’ve got a long march ahead of us so stick together, help each other.”

Twisting westward, he took a moment to sight out their path. Then he started hiking at a decent clip.

Occasionally, he shot a glimpse backward, checking the ranks. Stubbels’ supporters and the relatives kept their distance from each other. They didn’t fight, but he sensed the vast rift between them. It wouldn’t close up overnight. Maybe it’d never close up.

His gaze fell upon the crater. It looked gigantic, even from a distance. Looking closely, he caught a hint of gold debris swirling within its borders.

Is that a sandswarm? he wondered.

A shrill whistle rang out. Titus glanced back, saw a couple of Naticans jabbering and pointing. He followed their fingers to the foot of the mountain, to the enormous collection of rocks gathered there. His gaze traced the boulders, their grooves, their shadows.

He froze.

Tiny figures stepped out from the dark shadows. It was Dargon and the Banished. They’d cleared through the rocks even faster than he’d expected.

He fell out of line, beckoning others to march past him. “Faster,” he told everyone. “We’ve got to stay ahead of them.”

He kept his gaze focused on his brother. More figures stepped out of the shadows, joining the man. Before long, Dargon took his place at the front. With a shout, he started walking, leading them … southeast?

Titus frowned. If he could see Dargon then surely, Dargon could see him. So, why was the man giving up his pursuit? Where was he going?

Carefully, he traced Dargon’s projected pathway across the hinterlands. His eyes fell upon the crater.

He’s going there? he thought. But why?

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